The Nest Youth Hub in central Geelong and The fOrT in Corio are open to 12- to 25-year-olds after school on weekdays, along with a drop-in at the Armstrong Creek East Community Hub from 3.30pm - 5.30pm every Wednesday. School holiday programs are offered across all three hubs, including excursions. 

Parents can find out where our Mobile Youth Hub, equipped with gaming consoles, a BBQ, music sound system and arts and craft activities, will be popping up around the region through the Geelong Youth Facebook or Instagram. This mobile hub creates opportunities for Youth Development staff to connect with young people where they are and engage with those who may not have access to a dedicated local youth space.

Senior Youth Engagement and Connections officer Khyl said the hub’s drop-in programs offered a range of fun activities.

They're all free activities and could be anything from adventure park excursions, all the way to doing food and cooking programs, pool and table tennis and day-to-day activities like board and video games. Sometimes, we have external groups coming through and delivering some programs for us as well.

There can be arts and crafts, music lessons and personal development opportunities and time to just hang with friends in a supportive and fun environment. But Khyl is quick to assure attendees that they don’t have to participate if they’re not interested. 

We won't force them to do anything that they don't feel like doing - it's their space and they get to use it in the way that they feel the most comfortable.

I think that this is important because it creates this environment where young people can come and be with each other on their own terms.

Young person Wien is a regular at The Nest.

I like making new friends, the food, the activities like gaming and if I’m not doing anything at home during the holidays, I can just come here, do the excursions and other things.

I have made many new friends [and those friendships have continued outside of the hub through] playing sports and games online.

Year 11 student Jupiter said playing pool had become his new favourite activity.

I never played it before the youth program, so it's actually quite fun, and it's nice to have a space where I'm able to do it.

Youth Engagement & Connections Officer Emily said parents and guardians didn’t need to worry about cost.

All of our programs are completely free, whether it's drop-ins or excursions or events.

We also provide free food at all of our programs because we find that when young people come straight after school or maybe work, they're super hungry. 

We prepare home cooked meals; sometimes it's chicken burritos, sometimes it'll be pasta and they all align with our Food Policy. We also have snacks like fruit and muesli bars at all of our programs.

Jupiter said the hubs’ youth workers were there to help. 

They're very friendly… most of them are quite younger compared to normal, so it's helpful to have, rather than like a teacher, someone to talk to.

Khyl said The Nest was conveniently located on Gheringhap Street - perfect for central Geelong workers.

If your children have nothing to do after school, I recommend sending them over here. We actively supervise the young people and are happy to do activities with them. 

Our staff are very welcoming and do a great job creating an environment that feels comfortable, safe and engaging.

I can promise that there's something here for everyone.

Jupiter’s message to young people? 

Just do it - even as scary as it felt the first time, I just went for like half an hour to get kind of the vibe. It ends up being quite worth it.

Emily said young people could tour the Nest before making a commitment.

If young people are nervous to come to the site for the first time, they can contact us at [email protected] and we can work out a time that they can come during the day to have a look around and meet the team before other young people get here.

Parents and carers are also welcome to come with their young person to see the space and ask questions.

Our Youth Development staff are committed to creating a safe and welcoming environment where young people feel accepted, relaxed and supported to achieve their goals. All staff members hold current Working with Children Checks (WWCC), National Police Checks and are CPR and First Aid trained.

As part of the registration and induction process, new attendees will receive a participation form pack. This must be completed and signed by the young person and their parent or guardian (if under 18) prior to participating in our programs.